Josh Hamilton is off to a 4-for-29 start this season. That's a batting average of .138. Hamilton has only collected a hit in two, of seven games played. He's went 0-for-4, five times and he's only drove in three runs.
On Tuesday night against the Athletics, Hamilton came to the plate in the 1st inning, with the bases loaded, nobody out. After taking a 1st pitch strike, Hamilton swung and missed at back to back change-ups from Jarrod Parker. Striking out in his 1st at-bat, as a home team player in Anaheim.
So what's wrong with the new Angels slugger? Is it the money? Is there pressure to perform? Or have pitchers finally figured him out?
For the Angels, there's no need to worry. They've been through this before. Quiet recently, just last year in fact. Some guy named Albert Pujols, turned in one of the worst offensive droughts of his career.
Pujols, like Hamilton, signed a huge free-agent contract with the Angels that offseason. He didn't hit his 1st homerun until May. He couldn't buy a hit, he couldn't drive in a run.
Yet, Pujols turned it around. Finishing the year, with 30 homeruns, 105 RBI's and an overall .285 batting average. Those numbers fell far beyond those, anyone would have expected.
So now its Hamilton's turn to go through the rough patch. Every hitter goes through it, but only the great hitters like Pujols, know how to get out of it. It's nothing physical for Hamilton, it's all mental. When he sets his mind to baseball and nothing but baseball, he can't be stopped. Put the distractions aside, get your head in the game, and play like you've played before.
Slug the ball. Make plays. Be a star. He's not Albert Pujols, he's Josh Hamilton. But haven't we seen this before? Bad start, check. Good finish, that's yet unknown.
Hang in there Anaheim, its only just beginning.
Follow @GavinEwbank2013 on Twitter.
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